OK in practice – and theory

This teaching note considers the experience of introducing an extended case study and simulation into an auditing course for second or final year undergraduates. Having reviewed the reasons for adopting a different approach to the teaching of auditing, the paper provides a case for the applicability of case studies, drawing a distinction between auditing practice and auditing theory and considering the different roles case studies can play therein. After setting out the redesign of the auditing course, the paper goes on to describe the extended case study, discussing the reception of the course, the limitations of the case study and resource implications.     

Enhancing student engagement in large management accounting lectures

The education literature suggests a student-focused teaching strategy to improve students’ engagement in a lecture. However, in traditional accounting lectures students take the role of passive and anonymous recipients of knowledge. This paper reports on two cycles of an action research project, developing and refining a blended learning model, with the purpose of enhancing students’ engagement in the lectures of a large management accounting course. Results of our study find that engagement was enhanced with the implementation of this model. This study contributes to the accounting education literature through reporting evidence from action research and the effective implementation of a blended learning model that accounting educators can use.     

A Rejoinder to Commentaries on ‘Integrated Reporting: A Review of Developments and their Implications for the Accounting Curriculum’

This auditing case study focuses on a company presenting significant audit risk for an incoming audit firm. By presenting a variety of audit risks, hence audit implications, the case demonstrates the holistic approach to audit required in order to avoid an inappropriate audit opinion. The case is aimed at undergraduate students of auditing in the final year of their studies and students of the ACCA Paper 6 or equivalent. The case provides an efficient and original vehicle for instruction in auditing and can be used to complement other teaching aids.     

Building a market simulation to teach business process analysis: effects of realism on engaged learning

The emphases of student involvement and meaningful engagement in the learner-centered education model have created a new paradigm in an effort to generate a more engaging learning environment. This study examines the success of using different simulation platforms in creating a market simulation to teach business processes in the accounting information systems course. Specifically, this paper details the use of virtual world simulation using Second Life^TM, Blackboard^TM discussion board simulation, and face-to-face simulation to test the relationship among students’ perception of realism, computer efficacy, and student-learning reflections. Results indicate perceived realism and computer efficacy positively contribute to learning reflections in the simulations. In addition, simulations in online course provide positive learning reflections when compared to face-to-face simulation in a traditional course setting. Additional analyses indicate that gender affects learning in online courses using simulations, but this effect goes away if students are more efficacious in using computers.     

Accounting instruction using the open learning approach

Open learning, with its focus on flexibility, user choice, and learner autonomy helps develop important personal and business skills, encourages learner involvement and personalises education. This paper reports on how open learning was used to teach introductory accounting in a Higher National Certificate programme at one UK university, over a 3-year period. The approach involved giving students a range of choices in the areas of course content, methods of study, and modes and timing of assessment. The open learning approach required a heavy front-loaded investment for teachers in preparing resources. Results were, however, positive in many respects. For example, examination performance improved over immediately preceding years, and evidence of more effective student learning was found. There was also some recognition, by initially skeptical students, of the benefits of open learning, although the approach continued to be seen as alien and unconventional.     

Ontology-based e-assessment for accounting: Outcomes of a pilot study and future prospects

This article reports on a pilot of a novel ontology-based e-assessment system in accounting that draws on the potential of emerging semantic technologies to produce an online assessment environment capable of marking students’ free-text answers to questions of a conceptual nature. It does this by matching their response with a “concept map” or “ontology” of domain knowledge expressed by subject specialists. The system used, OeLe, allows not only for marking, but also for feedback to individual students and teachers about student strengths and weaknesses, as well as to whole cohorts, thus providing both a formative and a summative assessment function. This article reports on the results of a “proof of concept” trial of OeLe, in which the system was implemented and evaluated outside its original development environment (an online course in education being used instead in an undergraduate course in financial accounting. It describes the potential affordances and demands of implementing ontology-based assessment in accounting, together with suggestions of what needs to be done if such approaches are to be more widely implemented.     

AE Briefings — Statement of Intent

This paper seeks to address the perceived failure of university teaching to foster critical understanding of audit practice and to identify a potential remedy. It contributes to the debate (Maltby, 2001, “Second thoughts about ‘Cases in Auditing’,” Accounting Education: an international journal, 10(4), 421–428) by investigating the double-faceted nature of auditing: as a sub-set of the academic discipline of accounting and as professional practice. Although case studies are helpful for students of auditing, they tend to be artificial, or at best, retrospective. This paper introduces a different type of case study for audit education using corporate failure stories from the media as an example, proposing and explaining the notion of the ‘living case’ in order to foster critical appraisal of audit practice. It contributes to the literature on audit education by describing how this different type of case can address both the technical activities and the social practice of audit through Kolb's (1984, Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall) experiential learning theory and thus concludes that there is a place for the practical nature of auditing in academic study, in order to fully appreciate the social aspects.     

A ‘panoptical’ or ‘synoptical’ approach to monitoring performance? Local public services in England and the widening accountability gap

This article highlights how recent reforms to the auditing and assessment of local public services in England suggest there will be a shift from panoptical to ‘synoptical’ monitoring approaches. This is because the UK Government has abolished its centralised monitoring regime and instead required local authorities to publish a range of financial and performance datasets online, ostensibly so that citizens can hold organisations to account directly. However, the complexity and raw nature of these data, along with the sidelining of professional auditors, will result in most citizens being either unable or unwilling to undertake this task. As such, the proposed ‘synoptical’ approach will not materialise. Indeed, other legislative changes will mean that outsourcing firms effectively become the new, unaccountable observers of local public sector bodies within an enduring panoptical system. In many cases these companies will then assume responsibility for delivering the same services that they have assessed.     

Assessing the use of computer-based assessment-feedback in teaching digital accountants

Both assessment and feedback have a vital impact on students’ learning. Using computer-based assessment (CBA) with constructive and prompt computer-based feedback (CBF) reduces the attainment gap of the new generation of digital students. Action research methodology was employed to explore students’ view of utilising CBA and/or CBF in teaching and learning practice. A survey was administered to 537 undergraduate students in the Management School of a British university to collect data about their perceptions of using CBA and CBF to assess their progress. Findings from students’ survey show that students are generally appreciated the use of and benefits of CBA and/or CBF in teaching accounting modules. Findings also reveal that many participants valued working online compared to paper-and-pencil assessment and they also appreciated the timely and constructive feedback-feedforward they received. Information technology (IT), therefore, can provide an innovative type of assessment and feedback that students’ desire in an effective manner.     

The use of short role-plays for an ethics intervention in university auditing courses

This paper reports how short 10-minute role-plays can be used as an effective tool for ethics education within university auditing classes. A mixed method approach elicited student perceptions of role-plays in developing ethical awareness. While many students self-reported difficulty in recognising and dealing with the ethical dilemmas appropriately, most agreed role-plays helped them to prepare for dealing with these issues in the workplace. This was especially the case for students with English as an additional language. Students reported the role-play ethical dilemmas raised their awareness of the need to protect their professional independence. Students commented that they had a better understanding of the importance of the professional code of conduct and the code of ethics. Role-plays are a simple experiential learning approach that helps students to recognise ethical dilemmas, explore strategies to deal with such dilemmas in a safe environment, and practice listening and questioning skills to obtain information. Short role-plays can offer critical thinking opportunities that are more relevant to the student’s personal experience than case studies of historical ethical breaches.     

业绩归因分析在审计风险识别中的运用研究

本文以风险导向审计、审计风险识别以及业绩归因为理论基础,试图构建通过业绩归因分析评价企业审计风险的应用框架,并以莲花味精为例予以深入解析。研究发现:业绩归因分析可以作为审计师识别风险和应对风险的一种有效方法,有助于降低审计师从"特供"资料或虚假资料推导出错误结论的风险,也有助于审计师追踪报表重大错报的根源。     

An investigation into student satisfaction,approaches to learning and the learning context in Auditing

Arguably, the audit course is one of the most challenging as it links prior accounting knowledge with new audit knowledge that students are generally not exposed to. A mini‐audit group project was implemented at a New Zealand university, and a learning approach and learning experience survey instrument was administered. Responses from 98 students suggest that they perceived the learning experience positively and were encouraged to adopt a deep approach to learning. The findings have implications for accounting educators in the design and development of learning and assessment strategies in an audit course.     

Developing essential skills through case study scenarios

Society expects university graduates to demonstrate skills in communication, interpersonal relations and self-management, creativity, decision-making, and problem solving. Experiential learning is more likely to achieve these desired learning outcomes than traditional teaching methods. To provide an experiential learning environment we developed case studies for taxation students to represent a typical client engagement. Students are required to identify and research taxation issues, provide written advice to their client, complete and file an application for a binding private ruling, and consult with the ‘IRD's Adjudication and Rulings Unit’ to negotiate the most favorable outcome for their client. Students' responses about their learning experience through the case studies indicate that the skills we attempt to develop are appropriate given the objectives of the course, and that the case study experience is effective in helping to develop those skills. Our case studies can be adapted for use in teaching taxation in the United States and other countries.     

大学生思想政治理论课案例教学方法刍议

案例教学在大学生思想政治理论课的教学实效性上具有重大意义,作为一种重要的教学方法和手段,在实际教学中被广大高校教师普遍使用。本文通过案例教学方法中普遍存在的各种问题,分析了案例教学的具体过程和主要环节,得出了正确进行案例教学的正确方法和注意要点。最后,对此方法的实效性和重要意义进行了全面的归纳。     

Assessing inherent risk during audit planning: The development of a knowledge based model

Within the academic and professional auditing communities there has been growing concern with accurately assessing the various risks associated with the performance of an audit. One approach to developing sophisticated risk assessment models is to study how experienced expert auditors use industry and firm specific factors in making audit judgements. This study presents a model of inherent risk assessment based on literature reviews and a field study that involved structured and unstructured interviews and observations of experts in audit planning meetings. Analysis of the data gathered led to the specification of a conceptual model of inherent risk assessment which has been implemented as a computer program (a computational model). Auditors were asked to assess the behavior and performance of the computational model as a first step in evaluating the expert model.     

An exploratory study of the adoption,application and impacts of continuous auditing technologies in small businesses

Continuous auditing technology has been studied in various contexts, but mostly within large enterprises with their own integrated information systems and internal auditing functions. Although several vendors of continuous auditing technologies have reported implementations in small businesses, little is known about the use and impact of this technology in this type of organizations. This exploratory study considers the motivations for adopting a certain type of continuous auditing technology, as well as the applications and impacts of this technology in seven small businesses. The results indicate that the technology is usually implemented to increase resource efficiency, but is frequently perceived as a tool to fix data quality problems — rather than a strategically aligned technology. Implementation is not driven by an internal auditing department but by either an IT or finance department. Application of the technology is first and foremost transaction verification with process control applications emerging later. Main impacts include a change from corrective controls to preventive and detective controls; an increase in the perception of value created by the financial department; and an increase in management trust of data. The study also reveals potential negative impacts of this technology, such as alert immunization and loss of users' critical thinking.     

高校英语教师信念调查与分析

教师信念是教师对教育、教学、学习及学生相关概念的看法。英语教师信念在提高英语教学质量、推进大学英语教学改革及教师自身发展等方面有着重要意义。当前,为培养学生的英语综合应用能力、使学生能用英语有效进行交流,高校全面推行大学英语教学改革。为了解大学英语教师信念的当前状况、检视大学英语教师所持信念是否符合大学英语教学改革的基本要求,笔者对内蒙古工业大学的大学英语教师进行了一项问卷调查。调查结果显示:英语教师所持信念总体上符合我国大学英语教学改革所倡导的交际型英语教学;同时,鉴于学生的具体情况,大部分教师并未摒弃传统的语法教学;教师信念主要来源于反复教学实践、学生反馈和课后反思。基于调查结果笔者建议广大英语教师从多种渠道获取先进的教师信念,以促进自身的教学实践、专业发展和进一步推进大学英语教学改革。     

Towards Analytic‐deliberative Forms of Risk Governance in the UK? Reflecting on Learning in Radioactive Waste

While participatory forms of risk assessment and management have been the focus of much conceptualisation, experimentation, and evaluation, relatively less effort has gone into understanding how so called ‘analytic‐deliberative’ processes are developing across policy‐for‐real decision contexts. This paper develops a novel typology of citizen‐science interaction as a basis for analysing the nature and extent of recent participatory risk assessment practice in the UK. It draws on the reflections of professional actors operating across the UK environmental risk domain, focusing down on practice in the area of radioactive waste between 1998 and 2003. Compared with past science‐centred approaches, analysis shows an ‘opening up’ of risk decision processes to extended actors, knowledges, and values, with particular importance placed on public involvement in front‐end framing. This is being constrained by a failure to integrate engagement throughout decision processes, the exclusion of publics from assessing/evaluating environmental risks, and the upholding of a strict separation between citizens/science. These patterns of analytic‐deliberative practice — determined by contextual influences, barriers and challenges operating across UK environmental risk issue‐areas — highlight the need for further methodological development and systematic evaluation of relations between processes and outcomes.     

How futuring bush mechanics seek to transform the world

In today's complex and turbulent world it is vital to have futurists who can collaborate on collective projects, focus on action codified in exemplar projects and validate actions towards a better world. Unfortunately, current ‘education’ systems focus almost exclusively on the individual learner and have separated the learner from the praxis of the lived life. Furthermore, classrooms separate the learner from design, production and integration of learning into community life. The author argues that overcoming this separation of thinking and doing is one of the key challenges for modernity in future, in particular.This paper argues that a way in which we may be able to meet this challenge is known by the term ‘bush mechanics’ in Australia—innovative individuals who look forward wisely and solve collective problems today through applying their ingenuity with what is available, thus integrating thinking, doing and being in what in ancient times was called poiesis and in Medieval times ‘artificing’ and today can be seen in action learning and the bush mechanic. The four principles, as well as examples, of the bush mechanic approach are discussed including their exemplar projects. Finally, the importance of the bush mechanic approach to ‘futuring’ and creating living breathing examples today of a future our children can live with is emphasised and collaboration sought.     

An External,Antipodean Commentary on the Order of Accounting Topics

This paper discusses the approach adopted by the author in designing a graduate Information Systems auditing course at the Australian National University. First the paper identifies the environment in which the course operated, the resources available to it and the objectives to be achieved. Particular recognition is given to the pervasive effects of diverse and complex Information Technology on auditing. Next, the teaching components consisting of topics, mode of instruction and grading are outlined. General Systems Theory (GST) provided the hallmarks for identifying the range of topics for the course. As part of its evaluation, the course was compared with advanced IS auditing courses at other universities, both in Australia and Northern America. Students in Australian courses appear to have spent more time on cases and problems and in computer laboratories and less time on the computer audit process than students in the USA/Canada. Recommendations for the Australian National University course are that more time could be spent on cases and problems in tutorials and in computer laboratories.